Hearing his words, Sayaka's face instantly turned crimson, the blush spreading all the way to her earlobes. Her gaze, which instinctively tried to avert itself in shyness, was forcefully pulled back by her willpower, and she met his eyes like a small, trembling animal cornered yet unwilling to flee.
"R-Really…?" she whispered, her voice quivering.
"Of course it's true," Mahiro replied without hesitation, his tone steady and reassuring.
"Mm… I understand." Sayaka lowered her head slightly, but then, as though gathering all the courage she had been storing up until now, she continued in a faint, trembling voice.
"Mahiro-kun… I like you. I—I won't give up."
Her words, though soft, rang with determination.
"I will keep working hard, I will become stronger… strong enough to be worthy of standing beside you, Mahiro-kun."
Her eyes, usually timid, flickered with a firm light that startled even herself.
She had already heard plenty about Yotsuba Mahiro from her father. Though Saegusa-senpai had been with him during the incident, it was Mahiro who had practically wiped out the entire Blanche organization by himself.
Even Erika had spoken of it with admiration.
So dazzling, so powerful.
To Sayaka, who often saw herself as nothing more than an ordinary girl—an ugly duckling standing beneath the brilliance of swans—he was almost unreachable.
But today, she had gathered every shred of her courage just to speak her heart out.
"Mahiro-kun… would you… would you be willing to accept me, even though I'm not as graceful as Saegusa-senpai, nor as brilliant as the others? I'm just… just someone who can only chase after your silhouette with all her strength, hoping one day to walk alongside you…"
Her voice trembled as she finished, but her eyes did not waver.
For a moment, Mahiro said nothing. He simply reached out and drew her slender form closer, his arm wrapping gently but firmly around her waist.
Did he even need to answer?
The warmth of his embrace, the silent intensity of his gaze—those were already more eloquent than words. A kiss, if anything, would have been the perfect answer.
But then—
"Sayaka-senpai… you do realize, right? I'm poor. The Yotsuba Family abandoned me." Mahiro's lips curved in a faint, self-deprecating smile.
Sayaka's eyes widened, but she shook her head firmly.
"It's fine! I can support you!" she blurted out, her tone earnest to the point of making his heart tremble.
He had said it half as a joke, expecting embarrassment or denial, but her reply was anything but.
Being supported by someone like her—it was tempting, perhaps even comforting. But…
Mahiro inwardly shook his head. He didn't intend to rely on anyone, not like that. Depending entirely on Sayaka-senpai? That would be too shameless, too heavy a burden to place on her. He couldn't bear to.
Meanwhile, elsewhere—
"Hey, Erika-chan… what exactly are Sayaka-senpai and Yotsuba-kun doing? They've been gone for so long."
Mizuki's eyes darted around curiously, clearly restless after waiting so long. She had no idea what the two were up to.
"Maybe they'll have a child by the time they come back?" Erika teased with a mischievous grin.
"Eh?!" Mizuki tilted her head, her eyes going wide in complete bewilderment. "Erika-chan, what do you mean?"
"..." Erika's lips twitched. She looked at Mizuki's innocent expression and sighed in defeat. Her playful spark fizzled out as she gently patted Mizuki on the shoulder.
"Mizuki… you really are too pure, you know that?"
"E-Ehhh???" Mizuki panicked, her cheeks flushing as she flailed helplessly. Among everyone present, she seemed to be the only one who truly had no clue.
On the other side of the room, Watanabe Mari was speaking to Saegusa Mayumi, apparently trying to comfort her, while Mayumi pouted slightly, her cheeks puffed in frustration.
The Shiba siblings—Tatsuya and Miyuki—didn't need words. They saw through things more clearly than anyone else.
Further away, Kitayama Shizuku simply observed quietly, while her best friend, Honoka, tilted her head with a half-understanding look. Then, to everyone's shock, she asked in a trembling but serious voice:
"Erika-san… you don't mean… Sayaka-senpai and Yotsuba-kun are really going to… have a child, do you?"
Everyone turned to her in surprise. Honoka's innocent cluelessness was, in that moment, nearly on par with Mizuki's.
"Honoka, don't listen to Erika's nonsense. She's just joking."
"That's right, Honoka. Don't take it so seriously," Miyuki quickly stepped forward to defend Mahiro, while Shizuku added her calm agreement.
"Oh my, Miyuki-chan. You say that, but don't you care about Mahiro-kun and Sayaka-senpai's relationship?" Erika teased again, unable to resist.
"I do care. Very much."
Miyuki's response was firm, her eyes unwavering.
"But…"
She trailed off, her expression softening as she turned away. With graceful steps, she walked quietly toward the window, her gaze lifting to the wide azure sky, where pale clouds drifted gently across the sunlight.
"As long as Mahiro-oniisama is happy now… that's enough for me. Miyuki is satisfied with just that."
Her voice was calm, yet carried a weight that struck the hearts of those listening.
If Shiba Tatsuya's life was one manipulated by human hands, then Yotsuba Mahiro's life was one steeped in tragedy.
Miyuki knew this well. As someone bound to the Yotsuba Family, she could not forget it.
Her words, though simple, resonated with an unspoken truth.
Especially for Mayumi, whose expression stiffened ever so slightly.
The name "Yotsuba" was not unfamiliar. The Ten Master Clans held immense influence, and among them, the Yotsuba and Saegusa families were the twin pillars that balanced power and politics.
But the Yotsuba were different. Their roots traced back to the infamous Fourth Research Institute, the lab that treated magicians not as people but as weapons. They had even abandoned their original surname, "Shiba," and embraced "Yotsuba" to mark their rebirth as tools forged in the crucible of human experimentation.
It was whispered that no other clan used magicians as mercilessly as they did.
So if Mahiro was truly born of that bloodline, then his past was bound to be crueler than anyone could imagine.
…
…
Mid-July arrived.
The first semester at First High School—attached to the National Magic University—had just ended. Final exams were over, and with summer vacation looming, the school intranet buzzed with results and rankings.
Students crowded around screens, some squealing with joy, others groaning in despair at their standings.
And among them was Yotsuba Mahiro.
His theoretical score was unmissable, right at the very top.
First Place: Class 1-A, Yotsuba Mahiro Second Place: Class 1-E, Shiba Tatsuya Third Place: Class 1-A, Shiba Miyuki Fourth Place: Class 1-E, Yoshida Kanbiko
Following them, Honoka Mitsui—Mahiro's classmate—took fifth place. Kitayama Shizuku landed in tenth, while Shibata Mizuki of Class 1-E held seventeenth.
Perhaps the most shocking of all was Chiba Erika, who barely scraped into twentieth. Below that line was considered failing.
But for Mahiro, something strange gnawed at him.
No matter how many times he scanned the list of practical magic results, his name never appeared.
"Hmm… a bit surprising, isn't it?"
The soft, even voice of Kitayama Shizuku reached his ears. Standing behind him, she too stared at the rankings.
Mahiro turned his head lazily, leaning back a little. "Why do you say that, Shizuku-san?"
"It's simple. Your magical ability is clearly overwhelming, yet you didn't even appear in the practical skills rankings. Instead, you scored a perfect one-hundred in theory."
Shizuku's expression was as calm as always, but even her words carried a trace of disbelief.
Before Mahiro could reply, Honoka Mitsui perked up from nearby, spinning around with a sparkle in her eyes.
"That's right! Mahiro-kun's practical magic is super strong. It doesn't make sense for him to be left out!"
Since Sayaka's recovery and thanks to Erika's bad habit of gossiping, most of their small circle had started addressing him more casually—by his given name.
And when it came to his "practical skills," there were reasons they found his absence strange.
The riot back in April had been carefully suppressed by information control. Still, thanks to Erika's big mouth, those closest to Mahiro knew what he had truly been capable of.
Which was why Honoka and Shizuku now gazed at him expectantly, their eyes burning with curiosity.
Mahiro scratched his cheek awkwardly, then spread his hands in mock surrender.
"Honestly, it's nothing dramatic. Theory exams are on paper, so I just answered them seriously. But I really don't like the method of practical exams. That's all."
It wasn't a lie.
The setup of the school's mock battle exams, the sterile test arenas—they reminded him too much of the Fourth Research Institute. The cold stares of researchers, the endless demand for results.
He hated it.
"I see…"
Shizuku tilted her head slightly, as though half-understanding his words. Her tone, however, remained tranquil.
"Then, Mahiro-kun, the upcoming Nine Schools Competition during summer vacation should be perfect for you."
Mahiro blinked.
"Eh? Nine Schools Competition?"
The words rang a bell, but he couldn't immediately place them.
Meanwhile, Shizuku's eyes gleamed faintly, and Honoka clasped her hands together, as if imagining him shining on the national stage.
Mahiro, however, only sighed and muttered under his breath.
"Yare yare… why do I feel like I'm being dragged into something troublesome again?"